This application discloses a gas and liquid admixing system commonly known as a motorless carbonator and is an outgrowth of my previous disclosures in U.S. Pat. No. 3,394,847 and a recently submitted application, Ser. No. 6/077,301, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,271,097 in the U.S. Patent Office, on similar devices. It particularly involves the use of an improved design of gas inlet valve employing an arrangement known as a needle valve which has been found to have important advantages in durability and the ability to withstand adverse conditions of shipping and use as well as being of a construction that makes removal and replacement as a complete unit possible. In addition, it was fortunately found to have important features from a performance standpoint compared with the rubber seat and inlet tube arrangement shown in my previous disclosures.
In particular, the rubber seat arrangement was found to be vulnerable to damage in shipping and sometimes in actual use when water was not present in the carbonator to support the float. In some cases of shipping the rubber seat could be, and was, badly damaged by the repeated bouncing of the float and rubber seat on top of the relatively sharp open end on top of the inlet tube, especially if the carbonator happened to be shipped in a vertical position, which could not be controlled. Similarly, in actual use on a catering truck, for example, if all water had been drained from the unit a similar situation resulted when the truck was driven appreciable distances, causing similar damage to the rubber seat and requiring replacement. Under normal operating conditions the rubber seat had a long life since water was present to support much of the float weight or to dampen any bouncing that might occur.
The needle valve design shown in this disclosure has eliminated these problems since the stainless steel needle and nylon orifice which are used in the preferred design have proved to be fully capable of withstanding considerable use or abuse under such adverse conditions and have been found to be virtually trouble free. In addition, the tapered design of the needle, together with other features of the design, has been found to provide a smoother flow of gas than was provided by the rubber seat arrangement, and the smoother control of water flow into the carbonator that accompanies the smoother control of gas flow has led to increased efficiency of the unit. As a result, the simplicity of a single water inlet with a simple orifice directing full flow into the float mixing chamber has been found applicable, in combination with the needle valve design, to accommodate a single or double flow rate of carbonated water to serve one dispensing valve or two at a time.
It has also been found to be applicable to the designs shown in my recent disclosure mentioned above, Ser. No. 6/077,301, showing vertical and horizontal designs with pivoted and non-pivoted floats and with single or double water inlets using single jet orifices or combination jet and spray orifices. In these cases the smoother flow of water and gas and the freedom from damage under adverse conditions add appreciably to the utility and performance of the designs, while providing a gas inlet valve that is easier to replace, repair or inspect.
The detailed description that follows will further clarify the nature of the invention and its various advantages and applications.